Review of Singin' in the Rain (1952) by Byron B — 11 Aug 2013

Memorable musical numbers. Even when a couple of the tunes are old fashioned, visually the designs and choreography are stunning. I particularly love it when they show the difficulties in transitioning to talkies.

A good-humored ode to old Hollywood. MGM's main musical producer Arthur Freed, who oversaw so many great musicals of the period, had been writing songs with Nacio Herb Brown since the late 20's and early 30's when this story takes place.

Most of the songs had played in early movie musicals, some of which, such as The Broadway Melody, clumsily adjusted to sound like the characters here. Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly shared directing responsibilities.

The screenplay writing team of Comden and Green went through several drafts before arriving at this scenario that was destined to be a classic. The still versatile and youthful Kelly was nearing 40 when he played Don Lockwood.

Donen and Donald O'Connor, as Cosmo Brown, were in their mid 20's. O'Connor took the role originally intended for Oscar Levant, Kelly's costar in An American in Paris, when Cosmo became more of a hoofer.

And Debbie Reynolds was not yet 20 when she played Kathy Selden, very much in the art imitating life mold. Jean Hagen took the role of Lina Lamont, which was originally intended for Judy Holliday. Hagen steals quite a few scenes as the uncouth blonde ditz, who is not really as stupid business-wise as she seems.

Singin' in the Rain begins with a look at Hollywood celebrity worship with paparazzi flashes exploding and self-mythologizing for publicity sake. Things have not changed in the entire century plus history of Hollywood.

Lockwood puts a funny positive spin on his past. He's known Cosmo since the vaudeville days. They provided mood music on set for the silents, then he breaks into Colt Seavers like stunt work. Eventually he gets to headline a picture with co-star Lina.

Lockwood and Lamont are a hot property. The smoothly operating filmmaking machine is thrown into temporary chaos with the birth of new technology. Talking. Pictures. Don and Cosmo can draw on their singin' and dancin' skills from vaudeville.

And with newly discovered Kathy, who can dub Lina, they decide to change their latest silent project The Dueling Cavalier into talkie The Dancing Cavalier. Any musical has a certain fantasy element, but "ballet" sequences in Gene Kelly/Arthur Freed pictures are high fantasy, and with Cyd Charisse they are breathtaking.

It is such fun to see "behind the curtain" of the soundstages to see a representation of the movie-making process.